Chess is a game of skill for two players. It is played on a square board divided into 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight matrix, or in eight rows of eight squares each. The rows of squares are called ranks. Columns of squares are called files. The squares are alternately light and dark. Each row has four light and four dark squares, with a light square at one end and a dark square at the other end. Each player has 16 pieces, a king, a queen, two bishops, two knights, two rooks or castles and eight pawns to move in different ways on the board. The game progresses by capturing and removing pieces from the board during alternate moves until one player checkmates his opponent's king (moves so that an opponent's king cannot be protected or moved to safety) or until neither can do so and a stalemate results.
The two players sit across from each other with the board between them. The board is positioned so that the row of light and dark squares closest to each player ends with a light square on each player's right side. The chess pieces are arranged on the two horizontal rows of light and dark squares closest to each player. In chess, the two player's pieces are typically white (or light) and black (or dark), corresponding to the light and dark squares on the board. Each player's queen is placed on the row closest to the player on the light or dark square nearest the center of the row, depending on whether the queen is light or dark. If the queen is light, it is placed on the light square. If the queen is dark, it is placed on the dark square. In other words, the queen is placed on the square of her own color. The king is placed next to the queen on the other square nearest the center of the same row. One bishop is placed on the square next to the queen and the other bishop is placed on the square next to the king. The knights are placed next to the bishops, one on each square next to each bishop and the rooks are placed on the squares at the ends of the row. Eight pawns are placed on the eight squares of the row immediately adjacent the row on which the king and queen are positioned, one pawn per square.
Each playing piece moves in a predetermined way. The king can move one square in any direction. The king can capture other pieces by moving into the square occupied by the other piece. However, the king cannot move into danger, or into a square where the king could be captured by another piece.
The queen moves in a straight line on the rank, the file or diagonally in any direction and for any distance over unoccupied squares. The queen cannot jump over pieces. The queen captures a piece by moving into the square occupied by that piece.
The bishop moves diagonally in any direction over unoccupied squares. Thus, one bishop may only move on dark squares and the other bishop may only move on light squares. The bishop captures by moving into a square occupied by another piece.
The knights move either one square in any direction and then two squares to the right or left, or two squares in any direction and then one square to the right or left. Thus, the movement is all "L" shaped. The knight captures by moving into any square occupied by another piece.
The rooks move in a straight line on the rank or file over any number of unoccupied squares. The rooks cannot move diagonally. The rooks capture by moving into a square occupied by another piece.
Each pawn only moves one square forward per move except for each pawn's initial move when it can move one or two squares forward. Each pawn can only capture a piece on one of the two squares that are diagonally adjacent to the square on which the pawn rests. In other words, the pawn captures by moving into a diagonally adjacent square occupied by another piece. The pawn can only move into a diagonally adjacent square to capture another piece. If a pawn moves to the eighth rank, or the rank at the opposite side of the board, then the pawn is exchanged for a queen, rook, bishop or knight of the same color without regard to the number and type of pieces already on the board.
Each player can perform a move called a "castle" once in the game. That move involves a player's king and one rook. The move consists of placing the king two squares to its right or left and placing the rook toward which the king moved on the square on the other side of the king. However, a player cannot castle if the king is in check, if there are other pieces between the king and rook, if the king or rook have been previously moved, or if the king or rook must pass over or land on a square occupied by an opponent's piece.
A king is "checked" when he is attacked by an opponent's piece. The player "checking" an opponent's king must say "check". When a king is checked, the king must either move out of check, the attacking piece must be captured, or another piece must be moved between the king and the attacking piece. If none of those things can be done, then the king is "checkmated" and the game is over.
Traditional chess is very popular because it requires strategy. However, chess is limited to two players. Additionally, chess is often slow-moving and lengthy.
The invented game discussed in this document, on the other hand, allows two, three or four players to play chess. It is also a fast paced, less lengthy game. The invented game also requires more strategy than traditional chess because three or four players can create unique offensive and defensive scenarios.